Benjamin

Are you looking for our Twebrew School Treats about the Hebrew alphabet or our Hebrew Instructional videos? Click here for a directory!)

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Symbolic Foods

Since Rosh Hashana is the Day of Judgment, it is customary to eat simanim*, foods with symbolic meanings that invoke God’s blessing. We also recite a short prayer before eating them.…

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The Five Prohibitions of Yom Kippur

“…on the tenth of the month, you shall afflict your souls and do no work at all…for on that day God will forgive you and cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before God”…

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Original Vegetarianism: Where’s The Beef?

Adam and Eve were vegetarians. When God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, the Torah tells us that God said: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat…” (Genesis 2:16). While God…

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It’s Not Vanity

As today is International Women’s Day, Jewish Treats highlights contributions made by Jewish women in Egypt. “Mirror, mirror on the wall, whose the fairest of them all?” Snow White’s…

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The Purim Story in Under 300 Words

At the end of an 180-day feast, Achashverosh, the King of Persia-Media, banished (some say, executed) his wife Vashti for refusing to appear at his banquet. He then staged an elaborate…

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The Other Hand Washing

It’s been a lovely meal, from the fresh-baked French bread to the sinful chocolate mousse — every bite. All that is left to do is to recite Grace After Meals (Birkat Hamazon), thanking…

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Four Cups of Wine

Like almost all festival meals, the Passover seder begins with Kiddush, the sanctification of the day over a cup of wine. On Passover, however, the first cup of wine is followed by three…

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Good Fences Make Good Neighbors?

The term “ghetto” has a sad connotation in Jewish history and a very negative association when referring to certain poor urban areas. The term’s etymology, however, originates from a…

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